Britain's most and least used railway stations

[507021]

I've just found this article on MSN news and I thought it was an interesting read. Also of interest, there's photograph in the article of Denton station taken fourteen years ago that shows a Regional Railways liveried Class 101 at the platform.

The article states that the least used station in Britain, Shippea Hill, saw just twelve passengers arrive or depart throughout all of last year.

http://www.msn.com/en-gb/news/uknew...d-with-one-getting-just-12-passengers-a-year/

 

[Dr_Paul]

When one looks at the meagre and inconvenient service that Shippea Hill gets, it's not surprising that practically nobody uses it. But even if it had a proper service, a train every couple of hours or so, seeing where it is I doubt if it would get much use. I can't see why such a station is kept open, especially when one considers that there are sizeable towns on lines that do not have a station, which, were they to have one, would get rather more passengers in a day or even an hour than Shippea Hill does in a year.

 

[frodshamfella]

I thought Stanlow & Thornton would be amongst the least used and it is. I travel on the infrequent afternoon Helsby to Ellesmere Port services from time to time. I very rarely seeing any passengers use this station, just occasionally. Whereas I have noticed more now using Ince & Elton. But begs the question how do they compile this list, unless a ticket is issued how does anyone know ?

 

[Mordac]

I'm guessing the figures come from the ORR stats.

 

[Kite159]

http://www.railforums.co.uk/showthread.php?t=138787

 

[Bletchleyite]

Looking at a map, Shippea Hill appears to serve no purpose whatsoever, even compared with Altnabreac which is at least useful to walkers due to the footpaths in the area, whereas Shippea Hill appears to be connected only by roads which would not be fun for a walk.

I wonder why it was built?

 

[Dr_Paul]

Shippea Hill seemed to be used mainly by London-based plane-spotters going up the aerodromes at Mildenhall and Lakenheath. There was a decrepit motor-coach that would go from the station to Beck Row, by the main gate at Mildenhall. This was back in the late 1960s and early 1970s, when there was a reasonable service to the station, even on a Sunday.

Shippea Hill was like many stations in that area, quite some way from any settlement, but on a road crossing in an intensive agricultural area, usually with a couple of sidings and a loading bay. There were several stations like this on the Midland and Great Northern line across the fens, for example, Counter Drain and Twenty. My feeling is that would have been used mainly for freight, enabling farmers to get their produce to big towns and up to London; passengers were rather an afterthought.

 

[TheEdge]

Shippea Hill was reportedly built for potato cargo to be loaded and sent to London.

 

[Pinza-C55]

One thing I have often wondered about these statistics - how do they take into account someone who has a season ticket and travels every day to a lightly used station ? Or tourists on a rail rover ?

 

[tomatwark]

When I see these stories I wonder, if the least used station of this year no longer keeps that title the following year once people read the story and travel to it, so they can say I have been to the least used station in the UK, forcing the figures up.

 

[Kite159]

I wonder how many users British Steel Redcar will have in the next reporting period (since sadly the steelworks closed).

Shippea Hill is probably visited by more passengers than is reported, only due to those passengers stopping short or using an Anglia Rover. But like others have said there is bugger all around the station, a good couple miles along a couple pavementless road before you reach Prickwillow.


Denton used to be an interesting one ticket wise, as you could buy a single to Denton as once the train reached Denton it was after 09:30 where a GM rail rover/wayfarer was valid

 

[306024]

Shippea Hill is probably visited by more passengers than is reported, only due to those passengers stopping short or using an Anglia Rover. But like others have said there is bugger all around the station, a good couple miles along a couple pavementless road before you reach Prickwillow.

Well I know 3 of those 12, so yes likely to be more than that.

Remember sitting in Shippea Hill box one evening chatting with the siggie like you do when a US airman knocked on the door, asking for the next train to Cambridge. It involved a change at Ely, and took three or four attempts to explain before he got the hang of it. "And these guys fly planes" was the siggies dry comment.

 

[Pinza-C55]

Well I know 3 of those 12, so yes likely to be more than that.

Remember sitting in Shippea Hill box one evening chatting with the siggie like you do when a US airman knocked on the door, asking for the next train to Cambridge. It involved a change at Ely, and took three or four attempts to explain before he got the hang of it. "And these guys fly planes" was the siggies dry comment.

So there is or was an airfield near the station ?

 

[306024]

As Dr Paul says in post #7, Mildenhall US Airbase was nearish.

They used to have superb open weekends, had my best ever burger there Security put paid to those in the end.

 

[Dr_Paul]

As Dr Paul says in post #7, Mildenhall US Airbase was nearish. They used to have superb open weekends, had my best ever burger there.

I have different memories of burgers at Mildenhall; a whole lot of us from London went to the Hall open house one year in the early 1970s, we all had burgers -- and we were all violently sick around midnight after we'd arrived home. On the other hand, one could buy US-brewed Dr Peppers, which was really nice, unlike the filthy muck flogged under that name that was brewed here (to be fair, it's much more like the US drink nowadays).

Back to Shippea Hill, there's a piece here; an old railwayman says that it was used heavily for agricultural goods traffic in the past. I suspect that all these remote stations across the fens were used mainly for this traffic.

 

[Calthrop]

Remember sitting in Shippea Hill box one evening chatting with the siggie like you do when a US airman knocked on the door, asking for the next train to Cambridge. It involved a change at Ely, and took three or four attempts to explain before he got the hang of it. "And these guys fly planes" was the siggies dry comment.

In the chap's defence -- people know, and are acute / alert / on-the-ball about, what they need to: while they can be exceedingly clueless about stuff which isn't on their normal radar. (Sherlock Holmes didn't know or care whether the earth went round the sun, or vice versa -- such doings had no bearing on his detecting work. He had no intention of cluttering up with them, his mind which he needed for more -- per him -- important things.) Very many Americans -- and this since way back -- have never travelled on a train in their own country: for the airman, passenger trains and their ways were likely in the realms of Harry Potter, or the customs of Martians.

 

[AndyNLondon]

The Guardian paid a vist to Shippea Hill - the article discusses the declining local population & loss of freight traffic to the roads, but my favourite bit it this, when he's just got off the train:

I’m almost startled when a young woman appears from a parked car. She is delighted to spot whom she thinks is Shippea Hill’s monthly passenger. Joanne, a reporter at a Cambridge news agency, is here on a speculative assignment for the Daily Mail. Her face drops when I break it to her that I, too, am a journalist. “Did anyone else get off?” she asks. Nobody. She drives back to Cambridge.

 

[Kite159]

No trains stop on their way back to Cambridge

Did they forget about the Saturdays only service to Cambridge which calls every now and again?

It's a good little bike ride from Shippea Hill to Ely, just remember to pre-purchase a Lakenheath - Shippea Hill single ticket before hand to boost passenger numbers

 

[swt_passenger]

One thing I have often wondered about these statistics - how do they take into account someone who has a season ticket and travels every day to a lightly used station ? Or tourists on a rail rover ?

Any point to point season sold will be given an assumed number of entries and exits per month, year, week or whatever. I'd expect they'd presume the same number of days usage as for season ticket delay repay claims. There's loads of guff about adjustments to season ticket data in the methodological report though, especially where people don't actually use the whole validity of similarly priced fares.

I think rovers and rangers are generally ignored with the exception of where they are already known to be used instead of Day tickets for certain flows. There is a bit of an explanation in the methodological report.

The report is here on ORR's site: http://orr.gov.uk/__data/assets/pdf...ation-usage-2015-16-methodological-report.pdf

 

[70014IronDuke]

Did they forget about the Saturdays only service to Cambridge which calls every now and again?
....

If you read it, you will find out, won't you?

It's actually a very nice piece (IMHO): he's done some work to make it very informative.

 

[Kite159]

If you read it, you will find out, won't you?

It's actually a very nice piece (IMHO): he's done some work to make it very informative.

I did read it, hence my comment that he didn't mention the only train from Norwich A good article it was

Shame he didn't come out with a tall story to tell that other journalist to print in the Mail

 

[70014IronDuke]

I did read it, hence my comment that he didn't mention the only train from Norwich A good article it was

Then perhaps you should read it again then.

I do agree, however, it is somewhat contradictory. Maybe the editor messed around with it.

did this make the print version, does anyone know?

 

[Kite159]

Then perhaps you should read it again then.

I do agree, however, it is somewhat contradictory. Maybe the editor messed around with it.

did this make the print version, does anyone know?

On weekdays, one train stops here on its way to Norwich, if requested. That’s it. It comes once on a Saturday and not at all on Sundays. No trains stop on their way back to Cambridge

5th paragraph. Unless it is mentioned elsewhere in a roundabout way.

 

[70014IronDuke]

5th paragraph. Unless it is mentioned elsewhere in a roundabout way.

Ooops. My mistake .... i had to re-read it again and again and again!

yes. A bit surprising he missed the Saturday return, as he obviusly put a lot of work into it.